Thursday, March 21, 2013

Videodrome (1983)

Title: Videodrome (1983)

Director: David Cronenberg

Cast: James Woods, Deborah Harry

Review:

Videodrome is a film that I’ve re-watched many times over and
honestly, every time I see it I see a whole other level of it opening up before
me like some giant, pulsating vagina of the mind! What? You don’t know what I’m
talking about? Well, after you see this Cronenberg masterpiece, you’ll understand.
At first glance, Videodrome might come off as a movie that’s simply out to
shock you with its gory, slimy body horror (and does do that exceedingly well)
but if we peel back the layers of shock and titillation, we discover that this
film has a whole lot to offer us. It speaks, above all things about the over
saturation of sensory input we live in. As Debbie Harry’s character ‘Nicky
Brand’ puts it “I think we live in over stimulated times, we crave stimulation for
its own sake, we gorge ourselves on it. We always want more, whether its
tactile, emotional or sexual, and I think that’s bad” Problem is, she’s a
complete hypocrite because she herself is a sensory addict! And at the end of
the day, aren’t we all? I see many of Cronenberg’s films as essays on any given
subject, he’s films are always so psychological, so Freudian, that I find
myself searching for themes and symbolisms as soon as I push that play button. Let’s
see what Cronenberg was dissecting this time around shall we?

With Videodrome Cronenberg aims his scalpel at the media and
how its constant hammering of our psyches allows it to program us and make us
see things in a certain way, ultimately serving as a tool for our manipulation.
Television is a truly powerful tool that is used to send out ideas to the
masses, to program them. To quote the film “the television screen is the retina
of the mind’s eye”. On Videodrome this is represented by a living, breathing
video cassette that the bad guys insert into Maxx Renn’s stomach! The video cassette
tells him what he must do, like a program, then, like some robot, Maxx goes and
does what he’s been programmed to do. Maxx is a tool of the system, he is a
product of Videodrome, addicted to television, and he will do what it tells it
to. This is why at one point in the film, Maxx says “I am the Video Word made
Flesh”. We don’t realize it, but little by little the media can mold our
thoughts, this is the main reason why I can’t watch television. I am a self
proclaimed television hater; I can’t stand the endless barrage of commercials! Of
course, there are selected shows that I’ll watch, but I don’t watch them on
television, I get them on dvd and watch them without the commercials, because
commercials are my bane! I hate those things with a passion! I hate the brain
branding! I hate their manipulative nature! I hate the fact that everywhere I
look, every moment of my life, someone is trying to sell me something, so in
order to cut down on the amount of commercials I see per day, I avoid
television like the plague. Habitual television viewers submit themselves to an
obscene amount of commercials, that, same as the living breathing video
cassette in Videodrome end up programming them into buying things they don’t need.
This is what Cronenberg speaks of, how television can choke you, create a “tumor
in your brain” that can change your thoughts or make you do things you don’t have
to.

But Cronenberg's Videodrome offers us the way out of all of
this. The answer is simple, de-program yourself and get yourself reborn into “the
new flesh”! The idea behind this film is not so different from what the
Wachowskis were trying to say with The Matrix (1999). It’s about disconnecting
from The Matrix and living in the real world. Videodrome plays with the idea
that society as we know it exists under a veil of illusions and lies, and that
we need to wake up to the truth, to the way things really are. This is why James
Wood’s ‘Maxx Renn’ ends up saying “Death to Videodrome, long live the new flesh”,
with this action taken by Maxx Renn, Cronenberg is saying that we need to cut
with the programming and become a new person, reborn to a world where the media
manipulating our actions or our way of thinking or seeing things. The New Flesh
refers to the rebirth of the self, that moment when we disconnect with all the
lies, and the illusions that exist in our world and wake up into the real world;
no matter how ugly, corrupted or sad it can be, whatever it is, it’s real. The
film of course puts its point across in an extremely violent fashion, but the point
is made, kill your old self, disconnect from Videodrome, from the Cathode Ray,
from the proverbial “system” and become a new, self thinking, inquisitive
person. The films grand finale is not made to be taken literally; it’s a
symbolism for what needs to be done to become psychologically free.

In many ways, Videodrome was prophetic of many things that
were to come in the future. How so? Well, for example, even though this film
was made in 1983, it was already talking about “virtual reality” which would
eventually become what we now know as “the internet” that cybernetic world that
exists somewhere out there in cyberspace, wherever that may be. The place we
all connect to on a daily basis, the new religion of the world. Videodrome predicted
that “in the future, everyone will have special names” same as you, my dear
reader, probably have a pseudonym you use when online. My most recent watch of
Videodrome made me realize that it also predicted another invention, albeit a
more modern one. You see, there’s a new technology in diapers called ‘Google
Glass’ that will apparently put the power of a smart phone on a pair of glasses.
The idea being that instead of fiddling with your phone, swiping things with
your fingers, you can simply speak commands at your glasses and they will send
a message, make a call, take a picture or film a video. All you have to do is
start a sentence by saying “Ok, Glass” and the glasses will do what you ask
them to, even do a search on Google! In Cronenberg’s film, when Maxx Renn wants
to meet the makers of Videodrome, he has to walk in through an optical shop
because the creators of Videodrome are getting ready to launch their latest
invention that resembles Google Glass! Glasses for the public that will allow the
powers that be to control people easier! So according to this film, Google
Glass is the devil! Ha ha! Well, you
have to admit, this new invention has its advantages as well as disadvantages.
Wearing these babies will be like carrying around a spy camera everywhere you
go. And I don’t even want to think how commercials will fit into these little
eye glasses…the commercials will not be even closer to your brain! The film
speaks about how “the eyes are the windows of the soul” and I agree, you can
tell a lot from looking a person in the eyes, but what goes in through those
eyes matters a lot too.

If you end up enjoying Videodrome, which I think you will,
then I highly recommend checking out Cronenberg’s spiritual sequel to
Videodrome called eXistenz (1999), which plays with a lot of the same themes,
but from the standpoint of video game technology. On that film people reject
reality by connecting themselves into this video game world that mimics, almost
to perfection, the real world. But the world of eXistenz isn’t the real world,
and so, people live in a lie, a fake world. Which is true, take for example how
kids today will play more sports on their Playstation’s then in the real world,
with their real friends and you’ll see just how prophetic eXistenz also was. These
two films would actually make a great double feature, so if you’re in the mood
for that, I highly recommend it! Now if only Cronenberg would do a film like
Videodrome or eXistenz, but about the internet! I’d love to see what sort of
things he could prophesize about that! Geez, now that I think about it, Cronenberg
is a prophet for our times! Videodrome is probably his masterpiece, it sends
out a strong resonant message that is even more relevant today than it was back in 1983 when this film was made. Highly recommend it, let Professor Brian
O’Blivion show you the way!

Superb reveiw of Cronenbergs supreme masterwork Francisco, i agree with what you said about television, i hate it too, although maybe i have different reasons for hating it, you see, i truly believe that all the pornography on the internet represents the future more than anything else and that is not available on broadcast television or the hypocritical world of Hollywood movies, there-fore television and Hollywood is 'THE PAST' and the internet is 'THE FUTURE'. Hollywood and the media = lies and hypocrisy, pornography = the truth ! ! !. I much prefer the truth over lies and hypocrisy.

Just with regards to Existenz, i want to bugger Sarah Polley (as the bird was in 1997 when the bird was 18, not as the bird is now obviously). By the way, the way Existenz ends is one of the most memorable endings to any film in the entire history of cinema.

I completely agree with 'The Sayer of the Truth', why would you want to waste your time watching something that is still subject to censorship when you can have access to something that is totally free of censorship ! ? ! ?.

True, but the specific point i was making is that it does seem silly and pointless to watch censored material when you can watch totally uncensored material completely irrespective of your own personal likes or dislikes.

True again Francisco, its just that if you do that you are still half-way pandering to the liars and hypocrites who run Hollywood and the media, where-as if you just watch pornography literally ALL the time you`ll never have to worry about being lied to or decieved ever again.

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Excellent review! This may be my all-time fave Cronenberg film. I'm glad you mentioned EXISTENZ, which is very much the spiritual sequel/cousin to VIDEODROME. Cronenberg certainly has his pulse on technology and how it interacts with us, which includes depicting its benefits as well as it negative aspects.

I wonder why he hasn't done anything about the internet...I mean, it feels like he should somehow talk about that, he was always one step ahead, I wish he'd revisit this techno thriller genre...if he did make a film about this subject matter, it would be a fitting closing chapter to what I'm sure would end up being called "Cronenberg's techno trilogy"

Great analysis, Videodrome is one of my favorite films! I also quite liked Existenz, it's not as good as Videodrome but a nice companion piece. As you suggested I'd love to see Cronenberg do another movie like this about the internet!

I've also heard rumors about a Videodrome remake and hope it doesn't happen. Apparently it would be about nanotechnology which just sounds too different to me. And what would they call it anyway? DVDrome? Blu-Raydrome? DigitalMediadrome?

Damn, a Videodrome remake? Hmmm, handled correctly maybe...with the right director...maybe. But to me American cinema just doesnt have the guts it used to, it would probably be a watered down version of Videodrome, and where's the fun in that?

I agree with your hate for television accept for one key differance. I love commercials but hate shows. I find commercials funny and when they are not, they are still unintentionally funny to me.

However... I hate the messages sitcoms and dramas send out. They teach people how to call other people freaks and rely on the lowest common denominator for whatever emotion they are sending out. They make things that would get the lowest stern look of an eye in real life into some warped justified moment.

I would rather have a three year old watch a hated slasher then have them watch the newest police drama. These shows want you to belive that criminals that are Males are cruel horrible demons only worthy of contempt and revenge but criminal Females are treated as victimized, sad beings who could do no harm. It is a complete double standard and disturbing. Nevermind that they usually have their cast going around in tight jeans and the whitest shirts around and the most sexist jokes on tv are thrown at them. No, it's somehow empowering. And if I am considered disturbing for having a site with a carry fetish, the people behind these shows should be corrupted for corrupting the morals of a minor.

I agree with you Triston, television shows depict a warped sense of society, they want to project a certain way that people should be, some idealized (and most of the time completely unrealistic) way society should be.

Sometimes shows will have a character act a certain way just to project an idea, a way of thinking. I say BARF to that! This is why I hate television, because I can't see it as anything more then mind control. Well, most of it anyway, the shows that I do like I rent on dvd.

I agree, there are good commercials, I've seen some that have wowed me with their ideas, and made me laugh, but ultimately, I am also disgusted by most of them because they are there to brand something into your brain! Maybe if commercials weren't so continous and loud I would hate them less, but it's that constant hammering of ideas into our brains that bothers me, you can't go a second without someone trying to sell you something.